Pepper spray sickens 9

NEWS SERVICESCHICAGO TRIBUNE

Nine pupils at a Southwest Side elementary school were taken to hospitals Thursday after pepper spray was released in a classroom, officials said. Around 1:30 p.m., the Chicago Fire Department was notified that an unknown mist or spray had been released in a classroom at Lionel Hampton Fine & Performing Arts School, 3434 W. 77th St. The students, who were coughing and had itchy eyes, were hospitalized as a precaution, said Chicago Public Schools spokesman Malon Edwards.